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POLITICO 44

“You see a reluctance of governments, because of the debt problems, to invest in the broadband infrastructure, but we desperately need this infrastructure to really be competitive in the global market,” said James Elles, European Parliament member from the United Kingdom and a member of the Conservative Party, in an interview taped for C-SPAN’s “Communicators” program.

“You see Asia making huge strides as if money is no object to get the highest speeds of broadband,” said Elles, who is in Washington this week to meet with members of the Congressional Internet Caucus and other telecom policymakers.

“My sense is that in both the U.S. and in Europe, we don’t have the leadership necessary to understand the importance of having universal access to information and universal infrastructure,” he added.

Marietje Schaake, European Parliament member from the Netherlands and a member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, was also in town. She, along with Elles, told POLITICO during the C-SPAN interview that stretching wireless spectrum to reach the largest number of people is as much a priority in the EU as it is in the U.S.

The EU, which comprises 27 member countries, is trying to assess the spectrum situation in each country — similar to the way the FCC is trying to get a handle on how spectrum is being used across 50 states.

In Europe, policymakers are also worried about safeguarding spectrum used by the military — just as U.S. agencies try to keep their spectrum free from interference from new wireless technologies. And the EU, like the U.S., is also trying to develop “future-proof” spectrum policies that are more flexible, “so people can have their fair share and that we do move along with the speed of technological developments,” said Schaake, who’s expressed frustration that she cannot get Wi-Fi service in her office in Brussels.

On the net neutrality front, the European Parliament is investigating the practices of telecom service providers to make sure they aren’t cutting off access to competing services or violating civil liberties — an issue that the U.S. has been debating for many years. The Federal Communications Commission in January adopted open Internet rules for traditional wired broadband networks but stopped short of applying the same standards for wireless networks. Republicans in Congress have been trying to undo those rules.

Last month, the Netherlands became the first country in Europe to sign the concept of net neutrality into law, banning its mobile operators from blocking or charging consumers extra fees for using Web-based communications services such as Skype.

“What it will do in Europe is set off a domino effect where consumers throughout Europe are going to be curious [about] whether free services are actually denied to them [and] whether telecom providers are monitoring traffic in a way that actually violates civil liberties and fundamental rights and freedoms,” Schaake said. “I think it will be the start of a bigger discussion in the EU policy circles.”

In Europe, unregulated competition has been considered the greatest defense against anti-competitive behavior on the Internet. If consumers believe their Internet experience has been harmed, they can simply take their business to a competitor.

“But competitors actually deploy the same practices,” said Schaake. “Even though in theory there is a choice, in practice it makes no difference. … Telecoms had pushed their luck, and that’s why this was necessary.”